A summer obsession

This little piece has turned into my summer obsession. Here it is at the end of last week. As I continue working the kantha running stitch and turning fabric this way and that, I begin to have a longer vision of what I'll do with this new fabric. It is textural and about 14 inches square.

A tight view of the work today. The stitching must be about 75% complete. I am auditioning buttons for the squash blossom centers.

And considering beading but that will come later. For some reason, I have resisted using a thimble and so my middle finger on the left hand has developed quite a functional callus: all for art's sake, I suppose.

"We have to trust our own choice after all,

and end with the simple belief that what pleases

us is beautiful. Indeed, no other rule is of any use to us,

and if we do but honestly please ourselves,

and make forms which genuinely give us pleasure,

we shall find ourselves credited with

the power of designing beautiful things."

Richard Hatton